Legal Run Around: K-9 Unit to benefit from annual 5K fundraiser

Fond du Lac's Officer Ben Hardgrove and K-9 Packo participate in training drill at the old St. Vincet de Paul thrift store in Fond du Lac. Packo's objective was to alert Hardgrove to the location of a hiding suspect.
Taima Kern/Action Reporter Media

The Fond du Lac Police Department's Legal Run Around is a 5K run/walk and a one-half-mile kids' fun run hosted by the department and Fond du Lac Running Club.

Although the advanced registration date has passed, people can still take part in the fundraiser which will take place at Marian University on March 21.

Proceeds benefit the department's K-9 Unit and help defray annual training and medical costs for its two German shepherds, Packo and Rony.

Meeting the team: Beckford and Rony

"He'll lean into you, it is OK," officer Charles Beckford said as he closed the door he had just come through and moved to shake my hand.

Sure enough, Rony, the new Fond du Lac K-9, knocked into my ankles with the force of a small battering ram as soon as his leash allowed him to.

Tennis ball in mouth, Rony made small, excited circles in the police station lobby until Beckford gave a command in a low tone and foreign language. Rony obediently returned to his side as I introduced Beckford to photographer, Doug Raflik.

After a few photos, we sat down to talk about Beckford's early impressions of being teamed up with a K-9.

"I trained hunting dogs before I joined the force," Beckford said, observing that he worked with springer spaniels, labs, golden retrievers and German shorthaired pointers, working on hunting tactics and obedience routines.

"I've always worked with dogs and I became an officer knowing that I wanted to work with a police dog," he said.

At age 35, Beckford has 16 years of experience working as a police officer. Before joining Fond du Lac's force in 2003 he worked for the Door County Sheriff's Department and city of Kiel. When the retirement of K-9 Grendel in Fond du Lac was announced last year, he was among the officers who applied to take Officer Ryan Williams' place as a handler.

Rony, who will turn 4 years old in March, was born in Germany and brought to Steinig Tal Kennels in Campbellsport early last year. He received certification through the North American Police Work Dog Association and Waukesha Technical College in drug detection, tracking, handler protection and article searches. He also was trained for building and area searches for people and paired with Beckford in May.

The transition to becoming a police dog handler was relatively easy for Beckford. He owned dogs in the past and because he is single there wasn't a need for family integration for Rony, who goes home with Beckford during the day before working the second shift.

Rony cost approximately $12,000, according to Beckford. The money was donated by Prestige-Pak of Fond du Lac.

A K-9 and an officer are usually teamed for six to eight years. So far, Beckford and Rony have been on a few traffic stops, but their first 10 months together have been relatively quiet.

"He hasn't had to do any apprehensions or bites yet," said Beckford.

They spend most of their time on patrol and perform demonstrations from time to time.

"He is well-behaved," Beckford said. "He loves his tennis ball. He can have an edge to him, but when he's got his ball he knows that it is 'down time' and that he can relax."

Beckford said it is necessary to give Rony a physical cue when he should be relaxed as opposed to when he's "all business."

"No need to have him growling at you through the interview," Beckford said.

Doug and I met Officer Ben Hardgrove and K-9 Packo for a photo and interview during a training exercise a week after we met Beckford and Rony.

As we walked to the door of the training location at the old St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store we heard excited barks coming from several police vehicles parked outside.

Packo, 91/2 is the older of Fond du Lac's two K-9s. He is also from Germany and received training at the same locations as Rony. He has been teamed Hardgrove for more than seven years, putting them toward the older end of the police dog spectrum. Packo's days with the Fond du Lac Police Department will depend on his continued good health.

Hardgrove, 31, joined the Fond du Lac Police Department 101/2 years ago because he wanted to serve and give back to the community he was born and raised in, and he didn't want to sit behind a desk. When the position as Packo's handler came available, Hardgrove jumped at the chance to apply.

"My dad had been a K-9 handler for the county, so I grew up around police dogs. It was something I looked forward to," he explained.

Hardgrove had owned black labs and German shepherds and was very accustomed to living with dogs. His fiancé has enjoyed watching the bond between officer and dog grow over the years. Packo's duties include drug detection, tracking, handler protection, article searches, and building and area searches for people. They work on third shift patrol.

"Packo doesn't just track suspects. Sometimes it's patients with dementia who have wandered away or lost children or adults," Hardgrove said.

"It's just one person, but to that person's family, that person means everything," Hardgrove said.

Hardgrove adds that having a police dog is just as much a deterrent to potential criminals as it is an asset for the officers.

"If you are involved in a traffic stop and you hear a dog barking from the cruiser, you're less likely to do something. No one wants to be bit," he observed.

A strong-willed dog with a playful side, Hardgrove said Packo's ability to switch in and out of work-mode came with time and experience.

"Every dog has a different temperament," Hardgrove, "but Packo knows."

Taima Kern can be reached at tkern@gannett.com, (920) 907-7819; on Twitter @TaimaKern.

McFarland, Wis. Officer Ryan Copeland and K-9 Boris participate in a training drill in Fond du Lac, at the old St. Vincet de Paul thrift store. The goal was to locate a hiding suspect.
Taima Kern/Action Reporter Media